Gas Prices Prompt Consumers to Scale Back
The Dallas Morning News reports that 60% of U.S. households say they are spending less because of higher gasoline prices, according to a survey from Opinion Research Corp., which polled 1,000 households May 17-20. Consumers said they are reducing discretionary spending “on items such as clothing, shoes, jewelry, consumer electronics, at restaurants, on spa and beauty services or on other nonessential purchases.” Read the full story >>Full Article
http://www6.lexisnexis.com/publisher/EndUser?Action=UserDisplayFullDocument&orgId=617&topicId=12563&docId=l:617082566&start=11&nid=3458
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OK…It is amazing how time slips by. Eddie had hip surgery and I did some home repairs. Next thing I know a month has passed. One constant, however, has been the cost of fuel. It is still rising, and that is starting to crunch the disposable income of families.
Even large chains are feeling the bite. In times like these, marginal performers are reviewed and culled, if necessary. Darden, the parent company of Red Lobster, has pulled the plug on Smokey Bones and Bahama Breeze (partially) chains. An article on the matter contained an interesting quote that illustrates the tenuous grasp on market share that exists unless your brand identity can be built up simultaneously in the majority of large domestic markets.
“When asked why Darden didn’t just get rid of the money-losing Smokey Bones units and keep the good ones, he responded this way. “When you look at Smokey Bones and its sales levels and its business models, to really make that work, we need a business that we can advertise nationally,” he said.
http://www.restaurant-hospitality.com/article/16981
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